Kam Heskin was sitting on a plane waiting to fly from Los Angeles to New York when she learned that she had been hired for a Sunset Beach role. "The flight attendant came on and said, 'Kam Heskin, please ring your bell,'" recalls the actress. "Of course, the bell didn't work!" Eventually, Heskin made her presence known and was told she had to get off the plane immediately. She did - with nothing but her purse - and was at work on the set of the NBC soap the following day.

Heskin's road to Sunset - from her initial reading for producers in New York several months earlier to her aborted flight following another audition - was fraught with mystery. "When I did a reading in New York, I was told that it was for the role of Amy," she recalls. "I got kind of nervous because I had looked up the role of Amy and found that she was already being played by Krissy Carlson. I thought, 'This is bogus! How can I be testing for a role that someone else has already been cast in?'"

Heskin didn't realize that she was reading for the role of Caitlin Deschanel. Because Vanessa Dorman, who originated the role, was being let go, the recasting was shrouded in secrecy. So much so, in fact, that Heskin didn't find out the truth until she arrived to be fitted for her Sunset wardrobe. "Everyone was so hush-hush, and people were asking me, 'You know what's going on, right?'" she says. "I said, 'Yes, I got the part of Amy and ...' They cut me off and said, 'Well actually ... no. Here's the real story. You now have a baby and you're married to this guy Cole.' It was pretty mind-blowing."

So began what Heskin describes as a trial by fire. During her first day as Caitlin, she had to go head-to-head with Annie - and do a big love scene with Cole. Tough stuff to play, especially for someone who had never watched the show before, and had only a minor grasp of Caitlin's history. "At first, I was just so overwhelmed by the fact that I had this job, and really didn't realize everything that was involved," she says. Her adjustment period was minimal, thanks to the support of the people around her. "Basically, everyone I work with was great in helping me east into things," she says.

Heskin does mention that there was a certain "weirdness" that enveloped her for a while - caused mostly by fans who were used to Dorman in the role. "I got great support from people writing letters, but the Internet people were just brutal," she says. "I understand the reaction, though. You want the old person back, because that's who you associate the role with. People have trouble adjusting to a new face."

It's been more than a year since that backlash, though, and Heskin finds that besides finally being accepted as Caitlin, she is also more comfortable in her shoes. "When I first started, I cried every day for a month," she recalls with a laugh. "there was so much to learn, and I was concerned with what Vanessa had done with the character, and what my next step would be; I worked hard, took it seriously, and now am much more relaxed."

Recently, Heskin has been mulling over Caitlin's next direction - especially because she feels it's time for the character to lose her naivete. "She is just too damn trusting, and has this blind faith in everyone," she says. "Look where it's gotten her. I would like to see her a bit more wary, and notice the things that are going on around her. Also, I believe that she has some of her father, Gregory, in her that's just dying to get out."

With the threat of cancellation once again in Sunset's imminent future, Heskin hopes that she has time to continue fleshing out Caitlin, and a job to go back to at the end of the year. She understands that Sunset may not appeal to fans of a more traditional soap opera, like The Young and the Restless. "It is a little 'off,' which does set us apart from the others," she says. "The idea behind Sunset is neat, and I think people should really take a look at it, and give it a chance before they pass judgement."

Regardless of what the future holds, Heskin is content to continue to play Caitlin, and to focus on her husband, Jonathan, whom she's been married to for a year. When reminded that she's practically a newlywed, Heskin laughs. "The whole year has been such a whirlwind that I don't feel like a newlywed," she explains. Heskin met Jonathan in New York, and the couple was together for about eight months before they got engaged. "Then we stayed engaged for almost a year, and during that time lived together," she says. "Then we both packed up and moved to L.A., once I started Sunset."

Heskin and her husband have discussed starting a family, but they'd rather wait until the timing is right. "Working with the babies who play Trey on the show (the part is shared by Brock Bozzani and Gabriel Ging) has kind of cured me of wanting to be around children," she says. "It's sort of like baby-sitting and then giving them back. Then you can go out at night and enjoy your life."

Motherhood may not be in Heskins's immediate future, but acting definitely is. The acting bug originally bit in high school, but she remained more focused on another career path. "I originally decided to be a newscaster," she recalls of her earlier aspirations. "By the time I had gotten into college, I had done some theater, but decided I wanted to pursue journalism." Eventually, she decided to follow her dream, and steered herself onto an acting path. Because she "didn't fit into the theater community" of her school, Heskin turned to a television-oriented curriculum. "I really didn't know what else to do, how to go about being an actress," she explains, "or even - because I was so shy - if I had what it took."

Upon graduation, Heskin took a risk that would change her life, and ultimately send her on her current career path. "I got a job offer to be a copy writer in North Dakota, and another offer to modem for an agency in Chicago," she says. "I decided to take a chance, and moved to Chicago." It was while living there that Heskin appeared in her first film - Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer; Part 2. "after the audition for Henry, I never thought I would get the part," she recalls. "I just assumed that - and had no idea that my agent was frantically trying to reach me to tell me that I did get it. When I got home, I had a message that said, 'Get on a plane tomorrow - you're shooting a movie for the next two months.'" The role, though small, made her want to take another risk. "I really wanted to move to Los Angeles, but my agent said, 'No, Go to New York and get some experience first,'" she says. So she went to New York, threw herself into acting classes for two years, and signed with the prestigious Wilhelmina Models agency, as well as HWA, a commercial agency.

Coming to the Emmys this past May was the first time Heskin had been back to New York since she left it behind for Sunset. "I miss it so much sometimes," she says. "You really notice how crazy and hectic it is when you leave for a while and then come back. In L.A. everyone drives very nicely, and follows the rules, so to speak. Here, it's like, you have to b tough or get out of the way. I love that - and I love that there is a depth factor; there's so much art and culture."

So would Heskin pack up everything and return to New York if Sunset is canceled? Maybe ... but she'd prefer to stay in L.A., where the bulk of the feature films are produced. "I'd love to get into films - even if Sunset remains on the air," she says. "I have an out in my contract, so it would be nice if something came up. Also, I think that it would be helpful to my work on Sunset if I could take a break and play a different character for a while." Different, indeed. "I'd love to play someone really dark and edgy," she says. "Maybe a prostitute."

It's hard to picture the delicate, soft-spoken Heskin as a prostitute, but, hey, anything is possible. By making her Sunset role solely her own - despite an uphill battle - she's proven that she can do just about anything.